Showing papers in "Economic Botany in 1984"

Genetic diversity in major farm crops on the farm and in reserve

Abstract: Genetic vulnerability does not at this time present a major threat to production of United States field crops, according to a 1981 survey of U.S. crop breeding directors. But plant breeders do regard genetic vulnerability as an important and potentially dangerous problem. The 1981 survey indicated that although the genetic base of U.S. field crop production is not as narrow as in 1970, it still is concentrated on a relatively small number of favored cultivars. Genetic diversity is provided, nevertheless, in other and less obvious ways. Survey responses indicated that the genetic base of the elite germplasm pool is wider and provides more useful diversity than is usually supposed. However, breeders also value the national germplasm repositories as indispensable sources of needed diversity.

Foliage Plants for Removing Indoor Air Pollutants from Energy-efficient Homes

Abstract: A sealed, Plexiglas chamber with temperature and humidity control and illuminated externally with wide spectrum grow lights was used to evaluate the ability of golden pothos (Scindapsus aureus), nephthytis (Syngonium podophyllum), and spider plant (Chlorophytum elatum var.vittatum) to effect the removal of formaldehyde from contaminated air at initial concentrations of 15–37 ppm. Under the conditions of this study, the spider plant proved most efficient by sorbing and/ or effecting the removal of up to 2.27 fig formaldehyde per cm2 leaf surface area in 6 h of exposure. The immediate application of this new botanical air-purification system should be in energy-efficient homes that have a high risk of this organic concentrating in the air, due to outgassing of urea-formaldehyde foam insulation, particleboard, fabrics and various other synthetic materials.

Velvetleaf, Abutilon theophrasti (Malvaceae), history and economic impact in the United States.

Abstract: Velvetleaf,Abutilon theophrasti, a native of China, was originally introduced into the New World before 1750 as a potential fiber crop for the American colonies. Initial introductions may have come from England because of similar interests in the development of fiber crops. Commercial fiber production from velvetleaf was attempted by U.S. farmers for more than a century. The latest known attempts were made in the latter part of the 19th century in Illinois and New York. Velvetleaf never competed well with hemp, at least partly due to a lack of proper machinery for fiber processing. These early experimental plantings were apparently the source of velvetleaf as a weed in row crops. One velvetleaf plant is capable of producing as many as 8,000 seeds, and viability may extend beyond 50 yr. The plant is well adapted to our upper Midwest where maize (Zea mays) and soybeans (Glycine max) are the major row crops. The reservoir of velvetleaf seed in the soil is increasing. The current annual economic loss due to velvetleaf in maize and soybeans is estimated to be approximately $343 million per year.

Growth characteristics of aquatic macrophytes cultured in nutrient-enriched water: I. Water hyacinth, water lettuce, and pennywort

Abstract: Seasonal growth characteristics and biomass yield potential of 3 floating aquatic macrophytes cultured in nutrient nonlimiting conditions were evaluated in central Florida’s climatic conditions. Growth cycle (growth curve) of the plants was found to be complete when maximum plant density was reached and no additional increase in growth was recorded. Biomass yield per unit area and time was found to be maximum in the linear phase of the growth curve; plant density in this phase was defined as “operational plant density,” a density range in which a biomass production system is operated to obtain the highest possible yields. Biomass yields were found to be 106, 72, and41 t(drywt)ha-1yr-1, respectively, for water hyacinth (Eichhornia crassipes), water lettuce (Pistia stratiotes), and pennywort (Hydrocotyle umbellata). Operational plant density was found to be in the range of 500–2,000 g dry wt m-2 for water hyacinth, 200–700 g dry wt m-2 for water lettuce, and 250–650 g dry wt m-2 for pennywort. Seasonality was observed in growth rates but not in operational plant density. Specific growth rate (% increase per day) was found to maximum at low plant densities and decreased as the plant density increased. Results show that water hyacinth and water lettuce can be successfully grown for a period of about 10 mo, while pennywort, a cool season plant, can be integrated into water hyacinth/water lettuce biomass production system to obtain high yields in the winter.

Economic plant species associated with prehistoric agriculture in the Maya lowlands

Abstract: The issue of plant species used by the ancient Maya of the Yucatan region previous to A.D. 900–1,000 has involved a number of types of arguments, 5 of which are identified: ecological speculation, ethnobotany, plant relicts, linguistics/ iconography, and plant remains/fossils. Recent emphasis on uncovering and analyzing plant remains from Maya occupational and agricultural relics demonstrates that direct evidence from archaeological contexts can be obtained. This evidence, including fossil pollen, seeds, and stem and wood fragments, is used to evaluate various issues involving those species proposed to have been used by the Maya. The results support views dealing with the dominance of maize as a staple and the use of squash, agave, cotton, and tree species. Propositions concerning significance of ramon, cacao, root crops, and amaranth are not yet supported by direct evidence.

Silverleaf nightshade,Solarium elaeagnifolium, origin, distribution, and relation to man

Abstract: Silverleaf nightshade (Solanum elaeagnifolium) is a perennial weed that has become increasingly troublesome over the past several decades. Extensive use of soil-applied herbicides, accompanied by a reduction in annual weed competition and reduced tillage, have contributed to its spread and establishment as a serious pest. Crop plants are affected directly via competition and allelopathy or indirectly as the nightshade plants serve as hosts for destructive phytophagous insects or fungal pathogens. Probably native to the southwestern United States and northern Mexico,S. elaeagnifolium is now found in many semiarid regions of the world. Plants were used by the Pima, Kiowa and Navajo Indians in the preparation of food and in the tanning of leather. Containing the toxic glycoalkaloids solanine and solasonine, plants can cause livestock poisonings. The fruits, however, are a source of solasodine, which is used in the commercial manufacture of steroidal hormones.

Forest Biomass: T. Satoo; edited and revised by H. A. I. Madgwick. 152 pp. illus. Martinus Nijhoff/Dr. W. Junk, The Hague, 1982. $35.00.

Abstract: Pickersgill, B.,andC. B. Heiser, Jr. 1976. Cytogenetics and evolutionary change under domestication. Philos. Trans., Ser. B. 257: 55-69. Rankin, A.G. 1981. Prehistoric resource utilization: Rio Sonora Valley, Mexico. Annual meetings, Soc. Amer. Archaeol. 46: 92. Sauer, J. D. 1976. Grain amaranths. In Evolution of Crop Plants, N.W. Simmonds, ed, p. 4-7. Longman, London. Saunders, C.F. 1976. Edible and Useful Wild Plants of the United States and Canada. Dover, New York. Shreve, F. 1951. Vegetation and Flora of the Sonoran Desert. Vol. 1. Vegetation. Carnegie Inst. Washington Publ. 491: 1-192. Simmonds, N. W., ed. 1976. Evolution of Crop Plants. Longman, London and New York. Thornber, J.J. 1908. The viability of seeds. P1. World 2: 158-159. Weide, M. L. 1976. A cultural sequence for the Yuha Desert. In Background to Prehistory of the Yuha Desert Region. P. J. Wilke, ed., p. 81-94. Ballens Press Anthropol. Papers 5. Ramona, CA. Whitaker, T. W., and W. P. Bemis. 1975. Origin and evolution of the cultivated Cucurbita. Bull. Torrey Bot. Club 102: 363-368. Wilke, P. J., R. Bettinger, T. F. King, and J. F. O'Connell. 1972. Harvest selection and domestication in seed plants. Antiquity 56: 203-209. 1978. Late prehistoric human ecology at Lake Cahuilla, Coachella Valley, California. Univ. Calif. Archaeol. Res. Facility Contrib. 38. , T. W. Whitaker, and E. Hattori. 1977. Prehistoric squash (Cucurbita pepo L.) from the Salton Basin. J. Calif. Anthropol. 4: 55-59. Winter, J. 1974. Aboriginal Agriculture in the Southwest and Great Basin. Univ. Utah Ph.D. Diss. Salt Lake City, UT. Yarnell, R.A. 1977. Native plant husbandry north of Mexico. In Origins of Agriculture, Charles Reed, ed, p. 863-875. Mouton, The Hague.

Development policy, forests, and peasant farms: Reflections on Huastec-managed forests’ contributions to commercial production and resource conservation

Abstract: The Huastec Indians of northeastern Mexico manage their forests in an indigenous system that integrates commercial and subsistence production. Elements of primary and secondary forest coexist with introduced species in this diverse silvicultural structure which complements the swidden and permanent agriculture fields of the Huastec farmstead. The forest’s direct production of the food, timber, and fuel resources discussed here buffers the Huastec peasant family against market fluctuations and the failed harvest of a single crop. The Huastec system of forest management offers an alternative pattern to the agroforestry and plantation schemes now being suggested for development in the tropics. It is an alternative that provides protection for wild genetic resources while it contributes to the combination of commercial and subsistence agriculture so important for the successful modernization of peasant agriculture. The documentation of this system demonstrates that ethnobotanists and economic botanists have an important but unrealized role to play in the protection of biotic resources and in the development of sustained yield agroecosystems for peasants. The contributions of ethnobotanists are particularly valuable because they can find where and why useful wild species persist in agroecosystems. A greater effort to direct the attentions of policy makers to the value of ethnobotanical knowledge is needed.

New evidence for ancient cultivation ofCanna edulis in Peru

Abstract: Preserved rhizomes ofCanna edulis from 5 archaeological sites in the Casma Valley of Peru are illustrated and described. These were identified by their extant surface features and by their starch grains, which are different from those of any other known flowering plant species. Based on radiocarbon assays, these specimens range in date from 2250–295 B.C. Materials used for comparative purposes in this study included a collection of edible canna from the Peruvian archaeological site of Pachacamac and a modern-day specimen. A theory on the place of origin and time of domestication of this species is given in the conclusions of this paper.

Wild and cultivated cucurbits in Nigeria

Abstract: The family Cucurbitaceae is represented in Nigeria by 21 genera, many of which are of considerable economic importance. Certain genera, such asTelfairia, Cucurbita andCitrullus, are commonly cultivated in southern Nigeria since their fruits and/or leaves constitute important items in the local diet. Other genera are significant as oil plants, medicinal plants, sources of tanning materials, sponges and household utensils.

Ethnobotany of chumash indians, California, Based on Collections by John P. Harrington

Abstract: A great variety of native and introduced plant species were used as foods, medicines and raw materials by the Rumsen and Mutsun Costanoan peoples of central California. The information presented here has been abstracted from original unpublished field notes recorded during the 1920s and 1930s by John Peabody Harrington, who also directed the collection of some 500 plant specimens. The nature of Harrington’s data and their significance for California ethnobotany are described, followed by a summary of information on the ethnographic uses of each plant.

Morphological and agronomic description of selectedCuphea germplasm

Abstract: Forty Cupheaspecies, recently collected in mid- and southern Mexico, are described in terms of their main morphological and agronomic characteristics. In some species, dormancy, slow germination, sticky hairs, and perennial character, as well as poor flowering and low seed yield limit their agronomic potential. However, some species of the section Heterodon show good crop potential. Among these, C. wrightii, C. glossostoma,and C. laminuligeraseem to be the best lauric acid-synthesizing species. Of the capric acid species, C. paucipetala, C. lanceolata,and C. procumbenshave the best growing potential in humid climates, whereas C. leptopodaand C. inflataare well adapted to arid growing conditions. All Cupheaspecies show seed shattering caused by flower zygomorphy. This zygomorphy not only causes different petal shape and a bilateral symmetry of the calyx tube, but also dispersal of the seeds. It represents the main taxonomic trait for characterizing the genus. Flowering and seed setting continue over a period of several weeks due to indeterminate growth. Multiple harvests with vacuum picking systems that do not damage the plants maximize recovered yields.

“Seeds” of wild grasses: A major food of Southwestern Indians

Abstract: A search of the ethnobotanical literature revealed wild grasses to be a major food of Southwestern Indians. Oryzopsis, Sporobolusand Panicumwere shown to be especially important throughout the Southwest, though a large number of other genera were of local importance. Reasons for the preference of some species over others are discussed. The proportion of annual and perennial species used as food is equivalent to the proportions of annuals and perennials in the grass flora of the region.

Variation within teosinte. III. numerical analysis of allozyme data

Abstract: Principal components analysis of isozyme allele frequencies at 19 loci revealed 133 electrophoretic variants for 77 accessions of annual teosinte and 1 accession each of diploid and tetraploid perennial teosintes. The majority of alleles were found in low frequency, and many were distributed only in specific locations. Zea luxuriansand the annual Mexican teosintes appeared to be the most distantly related of all teosintes. Z. perennisand Z. diploperennisappeared distinct from each other and from all other teosintes. Teosintes of west Guatemala (Huehuetenango) did not appear especially closely related to Balsas teosintes. Several differences were apparent between Chalco and Central Plateau teosintes;however, these differences were not so extreme as those suggested by chromosome knob data. Nobogame teosintes appeared closely related to Chalco and Central Plateau teosintes. Isozyme data reveal teosinte to be a diverse source of germplasm.

Taxonomic circumscription and identification in theMedicago sativa-falcata (alfalfa) continuum

Abstract: Medicago sativaincludes 2 polarly distinctive variants, subsp. sativa (M. sativa sensu stricto)and subsp. falcata (M. falcata),which are connected by intergrading variants commonly termed subsp. × varia (M. varia).Cultivated alfalfas and most wild and weedy relatives encountered are referable to this continuum of variation. Because of striking agronomic and ecological differences among the variants, it is desirable taxonomically to divide the continuum as precisely as possible. Towards an improved classification, canonical analysis was used to circumscribe the intermediate group of the M. sativa-falcatacomplex as inclusive of the middle range between the multivariate centres of the polar variants. The 3 most conservative characters examined, flower color, fruit coiling, and habit, were used in a discriminant function to create a simple tabular key.

Prosopis pod production—Comparison of North American, South American, Hawaiian, and African germplasm in young plantations

Abstract: Prosopispod production was compared in 3 field trials in southern California, i.e., a typical orchard planting, an irrigation trial, and a heat/drought stress trial. Thirteen species representing North American, South American, Hawaiian, and African germplasm were evaluated. Hawaiian and African accessions were eliminated from the irrigation trial by a minus 5°C temperature. The most productive pod producers were P. velutinaaccessions from southern Arizona. In the fifth season, 5 trees of the most productive accession, i.e., P. velutina32 had a mean pod production of 7.2 kg/tree with a range of 3.2–12.2 kg/tree. P. chilensisand P. albatrees of the same age were much larger but had less pod production. Trees in the driest irrigation treatment had the greatest pod production. Pod production estimates of 3,000–4,000 kg/ha were obtained in the dry irrigation treatment by P. velutina20 which received 370 mm rainfall in the year preceding harvest.

Economic history of ostrich fern,Matteuccia struthiopteris, the edible fiddlehead

Abstract: Although the ostrich fern, Matteuccia struthiopteris,is distributed throughout much of the Northern Hemisphere, its consumption as a spring vegetable has been largely restricted to the tables of the Maritime Provinces in Canada and neighboring Maine in the United States. However, in little more than a decade the demand has expanded beyond these traditional boundaries, due to the present availability of the frozen product. The heart of the industry is undoubtedly New Brunswick. The harvest of 200 t/yr is approximately 4 times that of Maine, and from an historical vantage the traditional use as a spring vegetable is with the New Brunswickers as well. In light of the present high demand for the product and the reports of localized overpicking, a review of the economic history, resource management and attempts at cultivation is presented.

Kawal, meat substitute from fermented Cassia obtusifolia leaves.

Abstract: The green leaves ofCassia obtusifolia are fermented to produce a food product, kawal, used by certain tribes of Sudan as a meat substitute. Following fermentation for 2 wk the product is sundried and used when needed. Protein content of kawal is about 20% on dry matter basis. Two microorganisms are most commonly recovered from fermenting as well as dried kawal: the bacteriumBacillus subtilis and a species of the fungusRhizopus. Other uses of the plant are discussed.

Gene pools in grain legumes

Abstract: The range of genetic resources available for the improvement of grain legumes varies greatly in both its extent and accessibility. This can be related to the biosystematic relationships and the geographic dispersion of the crops together with the evolutionary age of the taxa from which they arose and related taxa. Harlan and de Wet’s gene pool system can usefully be applied to the legumes. Primary gene pools are often extensive, secondary gene pools are usually restricted or non-existent. Tertiary gene pools, though extensive, would require development of completely new techniques for exploitation.

Aseptic culture techniques for banana and plantain improvement

Abstract: There is an urgent need to identify or to produce ‘Black Sigatoka’ diseasetolerant or -resistant cooking and dessert bananas. Since bananas are perhaps the most conspicuously sterile of all cultivated fruits, breeding of resistant stock is fraught with great difficulties. An overview is provided of the potential value that may be derived from the use of aseptic culture techniques for generating and/or multiplying specific pathogen-tolerant clones. Special emphasis is given to the principles underlying various strategies and to the several levels of sophisticated methods presently available or that still need to be further developed before substantive practical benefits accrue. While the stance adopted in this paper is conservative, so-called tissue culture approaches to banana breeding and improvement may well serve as a model not only forMusa but for other recalcitrant crop plants.

Annotated list of Samoan plant names

Abstract: Ever since the European advent into Polynesia, nearly all aspects of the culture of the islands have undergone significant changes, some of which were slow, others of which were rapid. One of the relatively slow changes has been in language since many Polynesian dialects are today relatively similar to their pre-European contact form. The major alterations in Polynesian languages have come from the addition of new words applied to new material goods and concepts and the loss of other words resulting from the inevitable change of culture and lifestyles in Polynesia. As is the case elsewhere in Polynesia, these changes have occurred in Samoa, but nearly all the people native to this archipelago still speak Samoan as their first language. However, with increasing urbanization and emphasis on Western education and medicinal practices, the younger generation and even the one before it has lost much of its traditional Samoan lore. This lore includes the names and uses of native and aboriginal plants and is not being learned by the school-aged children today, at least in the urban and suburban areas of the islands. The purpose of the following study is three-fold. First, it is an attempt to make a complete and correct list of Samoan plant names. Second, the current status of many of the names is examined--some of the names are in current use, some are known only to the older generation (particularly to those individuals who have spent much time in the forest), and some seem no longer to be in use and may have now been entirely forgotten. Third, an attempt is made to relate Samoan plant names to those of other Polynesian languages, partly to substantiate some of the names and partly for linguistic comparisons. The following list does not, however, include horticultural varieties of cultivated plants since this is beyond the scope of the study and can be found in other sources such as Christophersen (1935 and 1938).

Guaraná ( Paullinia cupana ) as a commercial crop in Brazilian Amazonia

Abstract: Guarana (Paullinia cupana) is a woody vine or sprawling shrub native to the central Amazon Basin. The seeds are commercially produced on some 6,000 ha in the state of Amazonas near Manaus. The principal article of commerce is an amber-colored, carbonated soft drink. It is also widely used as a high caffeine stimulant and in local medicines. The plant is monoecious and is damaged by a number of diseases, the most severe being anthracnose. Prospects are excellent for greatly expanded international markets.

How can the well be dry when it is filled with water

Abstract: A review of the text of lectures presented by colleagues previously honored as the Distinguished Economic Botanist, reveals that several different approaches seem to have been taken. Some have given an account of new and as yet unpublished personal research. Others selected important aspects of their published research and presented them in a concise review. This led me to do some soulsearching to identify what my research efforts related to economic botany have produced over the past 25 or more years. Certainly, in terms of sheer weight of paper, the work of my group has been most productive in the area of isolation, identification or structure-elucidation of cytotoxic and/or antitumor agents from plants. We have isolated hundreds of compounds from plants, determined about 200 novel structures and found about 150 of them to be biologically active. This does not leave me much to talk about since these studies can be found in readily available journals. I might describe our efforts to locate biologically-active compounds in plants, other than those in the antitumor area, but since central nervous system stimulants have not contributed much to our total effort, I would run the risk of sedating the audience. Such a risk most likely would be statistically significant at the P < 0.001 level.

Ethnobotany of WopkaiminPandanus significant Papua New Guinea plant resource

Abstract: Pandanus is well represented in Papua New Guinea with over 66 species growing from sea level to 3,000 m. The territory of the Wopkaimin, who live at the headwaters of the Ok Tedi in the Star and Hindenburg Mountains, is particularly rich in wild and domesticated species ofPandanus. Detailed analysis of the species in classification, ecology, subsistence, ritual and material culture not only establishesPandanus as a locally significant plant resource but also contributes to the comparative understanding of ethnobiological systems. A close correspondence with botanical taxa of generic and specific rank and an absence of the most inclusive taxon term for plant are 2 cross-culturally important findings substantiated in WopkaiminPandanus taxonomy.

Panicum sonorum in Sonoran Desert agriculture

Abstract: Evidence of prehistoric domestication of plants native to southwestern United States is rare. Presented here are archaeological, historic and contemporary ethnobotanical data suggesting that a native grain, Panicum sonorum,was harvested, sown and culturally selected in the Sonoran Desert Region. This indicator crop, other new clarifications of indigenous crops, and water management practices all point to the distinctiveness of the region’s agricultural complex. As redefined here, the Sonoran Desert Agricultural Region is diverse in both native crops and in cultivars of introduced crops originating elsewhere.

Arrowroot (Maranta arundinacea), food, feed, fuel, and fiber resource

Abstract: Arrowroot biomass and processing residues were evaluated as as a feed, fuel and fiber resource. Ensiled aerial biomass and coarse and fine arrowroot processing residues contained 10.8–21.1% crude protein; 11.1–30.2% crude fiber; 3.8–17.0% ash; and an in vitro dry matter digestibility of 38.5–60.3%. Theoretical yields of 0.27 and 1.60 l of methane at standard temperature and pressure per liter of rhizome wash water and starch-settling water were calculated, respectively. Fuel alcohol production potential from yeast-supplemented aerial biomass and coarse residue were identified. Laboratory pulping of coarse residue was performed. The coarse residue has qualities that may be suited to tear-resistant specialty grade papers, such as wrapping paper and bags. The utilization of arrowroot by-products may lead to increased cultivation of this species as a food, feed, fuel and fiber resource. By-product utilization will also reduce environmental pollution presently resulting from direct discharge of unused by-products.

Dorsett-morse soybean collection trip to East Asia: 50 year retrospective

Abstract: This paper is devoted to the analysis of the 4,451 soybean (Glycine max,) accessions collected by P. H. Dorsett and W. J. Morse during their plant exploration trip to east Asia 1929–1931. Until about 1950 the collection was used primarily for the development of vegetable type soybean cultivars. During this period many of the accessions were lost. Today only 945 of the original 4,451 accessions are available in the United States soybean germplasm collection. From the 1950s to the 1980s, as soybean production increased in the United States, so did plant pathogen problems. The Dorsett-Morse soybean accessions have been extremely valuable to plant pathologists and breeders as sources of resistance to certain pathogens. Individual genotypes in the collection have been used for genetic studies on morphological, physiological and biochemical traits. Due to the development and distribution of higher-yielding soybean cultivars, farmers in east Asia are no longer growing lower-yielding landraces. Although these landraces are now extinct in east Asia, many were collected by Dorsett and Morse and are preserved in the United States soybean collection. Over the years, the Dorsett-Morse collection has increased in value and will be as useful to soybean scientists in the future as it has been in its first 50 yr of existence.

Evaluation of 107 legumes for renewable sources of energy

Abstract: One hundred and seven species of randomly-collected Leguminosae were evaluated for their potential as energy-producing crops. Whole plants, excluding roots, were chemically analyzed, and 11 species were identified as the more promising for future considerations based on a numerical rating system developed at this Center. Botanical, fiber, and protein characteristics of the more promising species that had ratings of less than 11 were considered excellent. Other characteristics, including contents of oil (1.7–3.2%; dry, ash-free, sample basis), polyphenol (5.4–16.5%), and hydrocarbon (0.3–0.6% for 10 species and 2.6% for one), were generally lower than those of promising species in other families previously analyzed. Of the 11 species, one contained principally rubber (polyisoprene) in the hydrocarbon fraction and 7 contained principally wax. Hydrocarbon fractions of 3 species with less than 0.4% were not examined. The oils of species with at least 3.0% oil were examined by thin layer chromatography (TLC) to determine classes of components and were given a saponification treatment to determine yields of unsaponifiable matter and fatty acids. The oil of one species was quantitatively analyzed for classes of compounds by TLC-flame ionization detection. Selected species with ratings greater than 10 are briefly discussed.